


The Dowager Duchess and the Detective

by rain_sleet_snow



Category: Lord Peter Wimsey - Dorothy L. Sayers
Genre: Canon Character Not-Exactly Death, Detective Investigations, Epistolary, Gen, Historical
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-28
Updated: 2017-01-28
Packaged: 2018-09-20 11:54:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9489944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rain_sleet_snow/pseuds/rain_sleet_snow
Summary: While Lord Peter is pretending to be dead to infiltrate a secret society, his mother strikes up a correspondence with one of his more eccentric colleagues.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [rosied](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosied/gifts).



> This was a fandom_stocking gift for Rosied, and is set in about 1927, during the story The Adventurous Exploit of the Cave of Ali Baba, when Lord Peter Wimsey delights his enemies and appals his friends by pretending to be dead. I did my best with the historical background and etiquette, but fear inaccuracies may have sneaked in. I also did my best with Miss Climpson and the Dowager Duchess' inimitable epistolary styles. I removed all Miss Climpson's extraneous exclamation marks on the grounds that she would not have included those when writing to a duchess, and made the Dowager Duchess's style a little more focused, as I thought it would be if she was writing to a stranger.

Dear Miss Climpson,

 

Thank you for your kind words of condolence. It is a pleasure to hear from someone else whose life Peter touched, and who felt his generosity; since the news came from Tanganyika so many people have written to me to tell me how much he mattered to them. It is a great comfort to me. I know how greatly Peter would have appreciated those tributes.

 

Peter often spoke of you to me and praised the work that you and your secretaries do. I find it very fascinating, myself, and I hope you will be able to continue your investigations without his involvement.

 

A small memorial service and concert will be held at two o'clock next Wednesday, the 13th, at St Martin's in the Fields. You would be most welcome.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Honoria Denver.

 

***

 

Dear Duchess of Denver,

 

I am _so_ pleased to hear that my poor words are of _some_ comfort and that you have been well supported by the many people whose lives Lord Peter changed for the better; _sadly_ in my experience when a person passes away many of those who come forth have only empty words to offer. And of course some of the articles in the newspapers have not been _quite_ what one might have wished.

 

I write in the role of an _ambassador_ from myself and the other ladies at the Bureau. (Thank you for your gracious expression of interest in our welfare, incidentally; as it happens, the Bureau will be able to support itself with some sad reduction of staff and curtailment of our investigatory activities, but we _will_ miss Lord Peter's interest and the cases he brought us.) We should like to contribute a small and tasteful wreath to the memorial service, but as there is naturally no notice in the papers to guide us as to whether flowers should be welcome, we are not sure whether we should pursue this aim - or whether it would perhaps be better to make a suitable donation to one of Lord Peter's many charitable interests. 

 

I trust you, Lady Mary, His Grace and His Grace's family continue to be as well as may be expected under the circumstances.

 

Most sincerely yours,

 

Katharine Alexandra Climpson.

 

***

 

Dear Miss Climpson,

 

I think Peter would have been pleased by such a floral tribute, and I myself should be delighted to see it.

 

I look forward to meeting you and as many of the Bureau's members as feel able to attend on the 13th.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Honoria Denver.

 

***

 

Dear Miss Climpson,

 

I apologise most wholeheartedly for the behaviour of my daughter-in-law. Helen does not always think of who can hear her when she speaks. It was a great pleasure to me to see you at Peter's memorial service and I thought your wreath perfectly charming, precisely the sort of thing Peter would have liked, and so much valued for having come from a true friend. I know my daughter Mary agrees with me, and she was very pleased to talk to Miss Blanchflower, such a clever young woman and so interesting! I am glad to know the Bureau will be able to continue its work.

 

I understand from Mr Murbles that you will be present at the reading of Peter's will. I shall be happy to see you again - I have enjoyed hearing your stories of Peter at work, as it were, it is an aspect of him that is quite new to me. I do wonder how much mothers ever really _know_ their children, once they are grown.

 

I hope you remain in good health.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Honoria Denver.

 

***

 

Dear Duchess of Denver,

 

Please, think no more of it. I have often observed that bereavement makes people do the most _curious_ things, and as the dear vicar of St Anne's - my parish church - has frequently observed to me, it is simply _not wise_ to pay any great attention. Naturally I never dreamed of taking any offence.

 

I was honoured to meet you and your daughter - Lady Mary reminds me very much of Lord Peter in her expressions - and really I thought it was altogether a most _beautiful_ service. Inspector Parker gave the eulogy very well, and the music was enchanting; I remember Lord Peter as a very musical man and I do hope he would have liked it. And the number of tributes from so many very _different_ people, novelists and artists and policemen and financiers, was wonderful to see! I was sorry to find Mr Bunter in such low spirits, however.

 

I have indeed been invited to the reading of the will, though I find thinking of it very lowering. Although I believe he often took great risks, as a sportsman and a detective, I never for once considered that I might outlive someone so very _vital_ , in both senses of the word.

 

Most sincerely yours,

 

Katharine Alexandra Climpson.

 

***

 

Dear Duchess of Denver,

 

It is of course only a day or two since I saw you at the reading of Lord Peter's will, but I thought I would just take a few moments to set down this brief note and thank you _very much_ for your congratulations on the bequest to the Bureau, and your support for our work. Lord Peter was always such a _forward-thinking_ man - although perhaps not where his own safety or welfare were concerned - so attentive to _others_ ' needs! You are right to believe that the bequest will make it possible for the Bureau to continue its investigative function, although perhaps on a lower level. Fortunately Mrs Rosenstiel plans to remarry and leave the Bureau, and considering that we have not yet filled the vacancy left by Miss Ellison's departure, this means I will not be forced to ask any of the ladies to _leave_. The Bureau has been a tremendous force for good in all our lives, I can scarcely overstate the importance of a _real_ and _valuable_ occupation in lending purpose to life, and to be required to leave for reasons of economy would be very hard on the ladies - very hard indeed! I know you have guessed my concern. I am so _very_ glad to be free of it!

 

Lord Peter was always considerate. I believe your grace told me before that you felt he had been so from a child, and, on a separate occasion, remarked that you wondered how well mothers know their children once they are grown. Well, if it affords you any pleasure, I should like to tell you that - to my knowledge - he _never_ behaved without the _greatest_ consideration for others. It is a rare trait.

 

In these days, knowledge of the language of flowers is likewise a great _rarity_ \- once I prided myself on my near-encyclopaedic understanding of flower meanings but I had to seek out a _most instructive_ book to interpret the beautiful bouquet delivered to the Bureau on your behalf! It looks very lovely in our office, and we are all _very touched_ by the sentiments expressed. Your approval of our work means a _great deal_ to us, and we will, of course, continue that work, out of respect for Lord Peter.

 

Most sincerely yours,

 

Katharine Alexandra Climpson.

 

***

 

Dear Miss Climpson,

 

I am glad that you and the ladies of the Bureau enjoyed the floral arrangement - I confess that I too had to seek out a book reminding me of my floriography. Once, like you, I could read a posy at a glance, but I fear those days are long gone! Nonetheless, the exercise was a very enjoyable one, and I thought a Bureau of lady detectives might perhaps consider a small puzzle of that sort a refreshing challenge.

 

I write not merely to return your note but because I have another challenge to set before you. It is only a small case, I think - well, hope perhaps, because the young lady embroiled in it is my goddaughter and a great friend of my daughter's - but a potentially tricky one, and naturally, not one in which one wishes to involve the police - not even dear Inspector Parker, who was always such a good friend to Peter. I fear he is not the man to act under these circumstances, and of course one wouldn't wish to interfere with his official duties, even if he has often brooked such interference for Peter's sake! I am afraid the same is also true of Bunter. Bunter is possessed of a subtler touch, I believe, than the police, but as you will have observed at the funeral and the will-reading he is quite distracted with grief and shock. After the service he has done Peter over the years I am naturally concerned with his welfare, and I really do not feel that a delicate case of this sort would be best suited to him at present. He is still thoroughly occupied with Murbles in bringing order to Peter's belongings and remaining affairs. I understand that this is a long process.

 

Do you feel able to visit me and discuss this case? Perhaps tomorrow at four? Naturally I understand if you think it is not suited to the Bureau, but I cannot help but feel you would be ideally placed to assist.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Honoria Denver.

 

***

 

Dear Duchess of Denver,

 

Naturally the Bureau will be delighted to assist in any way we can! I am sure there will be something we can do. I shall call on you at four o'clock tomorrow.

 

Most sincerely yours,

 

Katharine Alexandra Climpson.

 

***

 

Dear Duchess of Denver,

 

Miss Ackerley has written to me to confirm the _happy resolution_ of the case - the letters have been returned to Lady Cynthia, as have the items of jewellery she paid that unhappy young man with. While Miss Ackerley, who read Law at Newnham College, assures me that there were insufficient grounds for a breach of promise action in those letters, it is easy to see how quite an innocent affair might be turned into a very _embarrassing_ and _humiliating_ episode! I cannot help but think that Captain Forbes was very wicked to have behaved so, and I am pleased to report that - thanks to _additional evidence_ Miss Ackerley stumbled across, which the police have been informed of - he will shortly be facing prosecution for theft and fraud. It was his dire financial circumstances that led him to blackmail Lady Cynthia; it is fortunate that he considered the leverage of possessing her jewellery more important than the potential _monetary gain_.

 

I am so pleased to have been of assistance to you. If there is any aspect of the case you would like to discuss with me, please, _do not hesitate_ to ask!

 

Most sincerely yours,

 

Katharine Alexandra Climpson.

 

***

 

Dear Miss Climpson,

 

Thank you so very much! I have just this instant spoken to Cynthia and she is in transports over the return of her jewellery and her letters (which she assures me are now safely burnt). I have also written a cheque to cover the Bureau's expenses and recompense yourself and Miss Ackerley for your time. Investigation has never struck me as an inexpensive process.

 

I should like to deliver my cheque in person. Sadly circumstances prevent me from visiting the Bureau myself. I had a small accident recently, as a result of the obstructive behaviour of Ahasuerus the cat, who you met on your previous visit, and am under doctor's orders to sit on a sofa with my ankle elevated at a most peculiar angle, which Doctor Ellsworthy assures me will aid recovery. Should you be able to visit me this week, the cheque will be waiting for you. If not I shall have it sent round, but you would still be most welcome to visit. I hope you will not mind if I ask you a great many questions about investigation - I have always wanted to know a lady detective.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Honoria Denver.

 


End file.
